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Episode 006 - Broadway coming to Epcot, 2026 will be slow (maybe), Ride vehicles for Nightflight, Epic Euniverse expanding, and next gen ride system development.
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In this week’s episode, the guys discuss the looming question of whether all the construction will make 2026 a surprisingly slow year for Disney World attendance, and dive into the massive Tropical Americas overhaul that includes the all-new Indiana Jones ride coming to Animal Kingdom in 2027. Damon and Blake also share the latest details on the Disney on Broadway Concert Series returning to Epcot for the Festival of the Arts.
Plus, we answer a listener's questions about planning a first-time trip to Dollywood. In the Aftershow, we talk about Universal Orlando's future, footers confirming the coaster replacing Rip Ride Rockit, and the prevailing rumors about a potential Quidditch-themed expansion at Epic Universe.
This episode sponsored by Dontresistthetravel.com
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Transcript
Episode Introduction
00:00:14
Speaker
Hey folks, welcome to episode six of the Rhubarb Travelers podcast. We are recording this show on Wednesday, November 19th, 2025. I am Blake. With me as always is Damon. How are you doing, my friend This is our second start. So I already asked Blake if he was sick. He said no. He says it's allergies. We talked about how the leaves and the wetness in North Carolina makes mold and allergies. Yes. There's the take. And it was all my fault. It was my phone.
00:00:39
Speaker
yeah You know, when my, my i do not disturb on, except for, you know, like my wife, my parents and my kids, and they all seem to want to, you know, message me at the. Exactly. or When you start recording. Exactly. When I'm recording. Absolutely. Even though I tell them all, like, again, Hey, I'm recording.
00:00:56
Speaker
And then they still reply back you're with, okay. yeah now The whole point was I'm recording. Don't. Anyway, ah so yeah, so it's been interesting here.
Holiday Preparations and Traditions
00:01:06
Speaker
I'm actually off from now until after Thanksgiving, but I have like a plethora of things to clean, I guess. Like the big thing is like it's time to clean and get stuff ready for Christmas. was going to say you got to start setting up for Christmas, man. Yeah, I wanted to set up earlier, but I just didn't really get around to it. So here we are at this this week. I still have to get my son from school. So there's that. So there's still a lot to do this week and then get ready for Thanksgiving.
00:01:29
Speaker
Actually, you're making me check my, oh, I have to start setting up for Christmas this weekend. The queen has commanded it. So, yeah. So anyway. All right. So let's get on to our. How many trees do you have in the house?
00:01:42
Speaker
and Oh, um one, two, three, i think. Three. Okay. We have two. Main tree. And then we have a smaller tree at the main entrance to the house. And and then one in one of our kids' rooms. So.
00:01:58
Speaker
So do you do anything with those trees? Like, we have a main tree for Christmas morning and then a tree for presents from like, you know, whoever whatever relatives send them and gifts to eat like each other sometimes in the loft, which is our second tree. Yeah. So our our main tree is in the living room and that's where all the presents go. And then okay the smaller tree that's at the main entrance of the house is what is called the angel tree. And so just my wife has collected angel ornaments over years. Oh, okay.
00:02:27
Speaker
We... a themed tree. Yes. Our, our themed tree on, in the game room, I guess that is, is all the kids ornaments that they've made to all me and ornaments that like I made growing up and things like that, just those ornaments. So it's all homemade ornaments only on that tree.
00:02:44
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. All right.
Community and Support
00:02:46
Speaker
ah Let's move on to our Patreon subscriber shout out this show. We are shouting out Angie C., who happens to be a personal friend of mine and a fellow member of the music group that I'm in called the Raleigh Ringers.
00:03:00
Speaker
So she has been. Which I think Blake is forcing me to go see this year. yeah I am forcing you forcing you. You backed out on me last year. so I did. I think tennis, though, is involved. Like when tennis is involved, there's not much I can do. I just wish it was the length of our episodes.
00:03:16
Speaker
I'd be a lot better with that. now Yeah. So, ah yeah, so Angie and i both perform with the Raleigh Ringers. It's ah a musical group that we're in. If you're interested, go to www.rr.org and you can find out more about the Raleigh Ringers, the group that we're in. So if you are interested in becoming a Patreon subscriber, please head on over to Patreon.com, do a search for Rhubarb Travelers Podcast, and we will show up. And we would greatly appreciate if you would consider becoming a Patreon subscriber. Yeah. Me and Blake were just talking about like what output money we have. And it's like, it would be nice. Like, listen, I don't mind doing a show for free.
00:03:58
Speaker
It becomes less exciting when you're doing a show and you're paying. you Right. but Anyway. Right now it's not too bad, but as we hopefully will start to expand, we will, our expenses will expand as well. So again, I'll be honest with you. There uh,
00:04:15
Speaker
ah That Halloween mask that I really want to do Instagrams with, let's be honest. All
Travel Plans and Tips
00:04:23
Speaker
right. So we do have a no DVC news, but we do have some DVC news, right? Well, yeah. So Damon applied for a wait list for DVC and he got it. So I guess, Damon, you're going to talk about it. Yeah. As we kind of talked about previously, like I'm kind of waitlist king. Like I tend to get all the waitlists that I want, so I can't complain too much.
00:04:44
Speaker
This one was a tough one um because we did have a three bedroom and we and it was a three bedroom on a Saturday. And we were looking for a Friday night to kind of match up with that so that we didn't have to switch hotels. So what we had done is, and this is at Hilton Head, and what we had done is we had booked a room at an actual hotel for Friday night, and we were just going to switch between them.
00:05:08
Speaker
And we would have done that, and it would have been not terrible. But, you know because you're not running to a park. That's why it's not so bad. You know what I mean? Like, you drop off your stuff, you go to the beach, you hang out. Like, it's not terrible because you're not running to a park. But anyway...
00:05:21
Speaker
We did get a two-bedroom lock-off, and it's going to be me my wife and then my daughter for her birthday and then a bunch of kids. I don't know how many, but I thought a two-bedroom lock-off to a three-bedroom will be fine. it shouldn't be terrible. And even though we have to move, again, it's not so bad. you know Head to the beach, move, you know eat, and and it shouldn't be so bad. might yeah Remind me when you're going again.
00:05:47
Speaker
March. March, okay. so Yeah, okay. There's some like small break there that matches up with like the week before my daughter's birthday. So it makes a lot of sense. We're only going for two nights, which I think is fine.
00:06:01
Speaker
And again, we'll eat all all the good places and things like that. Right. That time of year, it will be well not too cold, I guess. Yeah. So the thing is, is they're more concerned about the beach.
00:06:14
Speaker
Like, it's not like they want to go bodyboarding. yeah so You know what I'm talking about, right? Like, yeah yeah like they're they're not worried about, like, being in the ocean for the whole day. Like, my boys would be more annoyed with that, but they just want to sit on the beach. So the weather should be fine for that. So it shouldn't be a big deal. And it's interesting. I haven't, like I said, we've been to Hilton Head so many times. I've only actually been to DVC once.
00:06:38
Speaker
I think the other thing that I kind of like about it, and it's probably one of the reasons that I like ah the Gaylord properties as well, is that, you know, we can kind of just let them do their own thing and there's enough to do in the DVC resort that you don't kind of worry about. I mean, I'm not like I'm worrying about a 16-year-old, but at the end of the day, it's nice because it's all very self-contained. Like, if I want to go to bed at 10 o'clock and they're like, yeah, we're going hang out until 1230 at night, like, okay, cool. Like, I don't i don't worry at like 1130 at night at a DVC resort right where I you know might be a little bit more concerned somewhere else.
00:07:17
Speaker
Right. All right. So when once you get back from that, we'll get a get her trip report. I might record from there. oh Yeah, we'll see. We'll see how that goes. That would be cool. All right. All right, let's move on to listener questions. We have one Bernice C. came in at the last moment with a great question, by the way. So Bernice C. asks, I am looking into a 2026 first time trip to Dollywood.
00:07:45
Speaker
What are the do's and don'ts? Is there a better season to go? Do you stay on or off property? And she says, it looks like there's a good ticket deal right now if you stay on, but is it really worth it? And how many park days do you need to see and do everything? We would be two adults going.
00:08:03
Speaker
Okay. So this is this is right up my alley. Yeah. All right. Is there better season? I've been to all the seasons, and I like them all for different reasons, right?
00:08:14
Speaker
Summer's fine. it's little you know it's It's the mountain, so it's not like being at Disney in the summer, so that's fine. The winter is nice. It's not surface of the sun hot. because No, the the winter is fine. The only kind of downside you have with the wintertime is that you may run into some snow and that may be a detriment, right? So I probably...
00:08:35
Speaker
unless I was really looking to go to the Christmas stuff, I would probably avoid snow season. Right. So I think what we've started to find is the beginning of June, like right before kids, like, so being in the South, we get out a little bit earlier, right? In terms of school. But I would say that for us, if you can do it, June's a really good time, especially beginning of June, because kids are still in school. Like what we end up doing is like my daughter will get out on like a Thursday or have her last exam on a Friday. And then we just leave that day because not many people are willing to do that. So you still get this time of, you know, not a lot of people there. I would say beginning of June is what I would shoot for if it was me personally.
00:09:20
Speaker
Staying on property or off. So, all right. So let me interject here. So I have been to Dollywood one time and we stayed off property. And looking at it, looking at the deals and looking at the perks that you get from staying on property, I think if we were, if we were to go again, i would stay on property. I i think it's worth it.
00:09:42
Speaker
So it it really is a money thing because when you when you look at it, there's some really good places to stay off property that are far cheaper. So we usually stay at Riverstone.
00:09:54
Speaker
I wouldn't stay there as a first trip, right? But the Christmastime Inn, it is phenomenal. And I would consider that on a trip, but I don't think first trip. So the benefits you get with staying on property are if somebody could bring back like 1990 Disney cast member, like disney like cast member like um And, you know, just the the overall customer experience that you used to exist at Disney. I'm not trying to knock Disney, but I'm just saying, if you could bring back the golden age of customer service for Disney, that's what you get at the Dollywood property. yeah Like, I kid you not. like
00:10:39
Speaker
you'll be surprised at how many things there are to do that are just free. there's There's not a charge for them, just how well things are run, how nice people are there.
00:10:50
Speaker
I would say on property, it is a lot more money. Like, it is a lot more money. The thing is, is that You do get a bus to the park, which is nice, but it's not like Disney. you could drive there and it's no problem, but you do get a bus to the park. And the other thing is, is that you get the, I always want to call them time turners, but they're not. You get this little thing that almost looks like a Tamagotchi that allows you. Yeah. Like a little pager or something.
00:11:17
Speaker
Yeah, and you can schedule rides with that. And but I think it's worth it, especially if it's you know kind of your first time. So yeah with with two adults, i would I would definitely do it too because it's just not as expensive.
00:11:30
Speaker
And I think you'll enjoy the experience. Now, we've only stayed at the first resort. We're staying at the... um Heartland or whatever it's called, the second one this year.
00:11:41
Speaker
so I can't really speak on that, but whatever the first one's called, which it just eludes me for the time being, is really nice. it really is. And I tell you, as I've said before, we've had our best Thanksgiving dinner.
00:11:53
Speaker
ever there. So the food is just great. On property. On property. Yeah. And it was a buffet and it was so good. The food at Dollywood just surpasses anything you're going to find at the amusement parks in Florida for sure. How many days would I need to go? I think it's a two day park.
00:12:14
Speaker
I would agree. I remember, I think we did two days and then we did a third day for the water park exclusively. We did. And the water park is just okay. That's what I would say. It's just okay. Like, I don't think we're even going to go this time around.
00:12:30
Speaker
The only thing is, is you have to remember, Dollywood is is a great place. Like I said, my personal favorite park. But there is so much to do in Pitch of Ford and Gatlingburg. Yeah. so you'll You'll be driving by things like it's almost like you might as well stay at the property to start because like you can get wandering eyes for like all the other things that there are to do. yeah So just go to the park, stay at the park, stay in your Dollywood bubble for the first go around, but realize that there's a ton of other things to do.
00:13:02
Speaker
and And he's talking about in Pigeon Forge, which is where Dollywood is. And Gatlinburg, which is close to. And Gatlinburg, yeah. So just to be aware, if you've never been in that area, it's a little tourist trappy, right? That outside of Dollywood. It it is tourist trappy, but I would say it still feels comfortable and safe, which I think is nice.
00:13:24
Speaker
Yes, I would agree with that 100%. all right. so All right. With all that being done, let's go to hear a word from our sponsor.
Sponsor and Event Announcements
00:13:36
Speaker
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00:13:51
Speaker
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Speaker
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00:14:48
Speaker
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00:14:56
Speaker
And we're back. All right. Let's move into some park news. Disney has announced a new Broadway concert series that will be performing at during the Epcot. wait Can we just can we talk about how Beach Boys almost shut down Epcot, though? Yeah. So, all right. and If you've been looking at Facebook, you will have seen that John Stamos, Uncle Jesse, performed with the Beach Boys at the American Pavilion and basically shut the entire place down because no one could move around at all.
00:15:30
Speaker
and And it made me think about something, though. And it made me think that, like, you know, sometimes you go through the list of people that are going to show up for that event.
00:15:41
Speaker
And you're like, oh, well, where are the big stars? Like, you can't. Like, you yeah can't have huge stars because this is what, like, this was a big deal. And, like, it wouldn't have big dealed me, but you could have brought other people that would have made this even worse. So I kind of get now where they're coming from. I think this kind of showed us what can happen, which it was still awesome, though. I mean, Uncle Jesse performed with the Beach Boys still pretty awesome. So let me ask you, do you think it was the Beach Boys that drew the crowd or you think it was Uncle Jesse? Yeah. Well, see, I think that's interesting. I think it was both. Because was he really playing? I don't know if he was playing. Yes, he was playing a guitar. No, was it planned that he was going to play it? Oh, was planned? Yeah, see, so I think it's the Beach Boys that might have shut it down.
00:16:21
Speaker
i would I would agree with that. I mean, as as we talk about like who goes to the parks, like yeah, that fits the it fits the age range. So, but along those lines, Disney has announced a Broadway concert series that will be performing at the Epcot International fesal Festival of the Arts.
00:16:42
Speaker
They are going to be featuring the actual performers that have portrayed characters on Broadway from all of the shows that Disney has helped produce. um It's going to be happening at the American Gardens Theater in the American Pavilion, Going to be running from January 16 through February 23, 2026. There will be three shows each day starting at 530. They'll be at 530, 645, and 8 p.m. And Disney, of course, being Disney, has come up with some special dining packages. So if you want to have a meal that night, you can do that. And then you will get some preferred seating at...
00:17:23
Speaker
At the shows. And just looking at the list, we have performers that are coming from the Aladdin Broadway show, from The Little Mermaid, from Tarzan, from from The Lion King. So if you have seen any shows from and Broadway. Not like Blake would tell you like the DPAC or something. Okay, so I knew you were going to do this. ah I knew you were going to do this. I'm glad that you know me so well. And I want you to know, if you look, Michael James Scott, Michael James Scott is performing. He's the the genie from Aladdin, and he was performing at DPAC. One person. You can ignore whatever Damon says about regional theaters. It doesn't count.
00:18:06
Speaker
Damon has this incorrect opinion that regional it is musical theaters are less than Broadway. now Oh, my goodness. I can't believe you actually would admit to that on air. Are you out of your mind? Of course they are.
00:18:19
Speaker
Broadway is Broadway. Yes, but you have Broadway performers coming to these regional theaters. And if it wasn't—wait minute. If it wasn't for these regional theaters, I'm going to tell you Broadway wouldn't exist because— veryly existed before these regional theaters are crazy Very, very few shows ever actually make money. And it's when they go on these traveling circuits to these regional theaters that they actually make a profit.
00:18:44
Speaker
So if it wasn't for them. Folks, I just can't. I can't be on board with this. This is this is just a take that I don't agree with. you You know what? People are now learning. Again, this is the other question, though. Have you been on Broadway? Yes, I have. What have you seen on Broadway? I have seen Les Mis. I have seen Phantom of the Opera.
00:19:03
Speaker
they And I'm dating myself because neither one of those are on Broadway, you did right? He did date himself there, but that's okay. I just don't agree with that, but we're going to let it go for you. Okay. Regardless, there are going to be some top-notch performers coming. that i Sure, I have will get on board with that.
00:19:19
Speaker
to the American Pavilion. So if you are a big musical theater and you like the musicals, make sure you are in Epcot between January 16 and February 23, and you will be treated with some great performances.
00:19:33
Speaker
All right, moving on.
Disney World Updates
00:19:34
Speaker
Let's head on over to Disney Animal Kingdom. There's been some new information that has come out about the Indiana Jones ride that is, of course, taking the place of Dinosaur.
00:19:47
Speaker
So here's the information that Disney has put out, and this is official from Disney. Their wording is, this is on the outskirts of Pueblo Esperanza in the tropical Americas. An adventure awaits with pop culture's most beloved archaeologist, Indiana Jones.
00:20:03
Speaker
The attraction takes place inside a mysterious Mayan temple and will be an all-new adventure. Unlike any of the existing India attractions around the world, it opens in 2027.
00:20:15
Speaker
i do I do like that last bit of verbiage, right? Yes. Okay. We all know it's going to be similar, though. Let's be honest. All I've been seeing, though, let me be honest with you. so after So let's pull but you know the curtain back a little bit. So what happens usually during the two-week period in between is Again, like I have to just go on record and saying for all the people from that other stupid podcast that used to knock me about not following you know Disney stuff, I follow Disney stuff every single day. And I guess what happens is for Blake and myself, what we do is we just have an ongoing chat. And like if I see something that i think we want to talk about on the show, I send it to them.
00:20:56
Speaker
Right. What I've been reading, though, on a lot of the announcements for this has made me chuckle a lot. Because, again, I think they've they've hit the point of who knows Indiana Jones, right? Oh, yeah.
00:21:10
Speaker
And he he's not a big deal anymore. And and because he's out of Star Wars, like he's not a big deal there either. he's you know Harrison Ford, you know Hall of Fame actor, absolutely.
00:21:24
Speaker
But does Indy resonate well? with 20, 30 year olds. And what I found interesting was, is that my son is in some film class filling out some, you know, gen ed stuff for, you know, graduation.
00:21:38
Speaker
And they made him watch Indiana Jones. And I kind of said to myself, I said, oh, I didn't like, I kind of forced my kids to watch center certain movies. Like the Goonies, you have to sit and watch that. Whether you like it or not, that's life because that's awesome. yeahp um But I don't think I ever made them watch Indiana Jones. So if he wasn't in this film class, wouldn't have watched it. My daughter never watched it. My other son never watched it. So what are we going for here? like they they They have to bring some sort of other media to the table here.
00:22:09
Speaker
Right? Yeah. Like, that's the way I feel. So have you ever ridden any of the other Indiana Jones rides? I have not. I have not either. Yeah. And again, for me, it's not necessarily about...
00:22:23
Speaker
anything other than the IP, I'm just still very confused at the IP take for this ride unless there's something planned from Disney to bring so bring it back. like i just I'm still befuddled about the IP take.
00:22:41
Speaker
Maybe they've got a TV series. I mean, something would be great, but without and something else, like I just, I feel like it's a miss on an IP when you could do so many other things.
00:22:54
Speaker
So in a way it's almost like Tron, the Tron ride. Yes. Tron. Oh gosh. As much as I hate to say it, the Tron movies have just all flopped and man are I didn't even understand like how they could exist. like After the first one, it was like very time-based, and yeah you know and i just I didn't know how Tron could exist in our world either. Which, again, you could have made that right anything else. Yeah, very true.
00:23:21
Speaker
All right. All right. So let's stay at Disney World in general. So there was an article that came out not too long ago, and the question was posed, will 2026 be a slow year for Disney World? And the reason that this article said that It's because Disney World right now is in a very similar situation that Universal Orlando was in just two years ago. So let's let's go back in the Wayback Machine all the way to 2024, okay, and a little bit of 2023.
00:23:55
Speaker
Universal Orlando had a lot of major additions coming with Epic Universe. Yeah, and they tried to shoehorn in some bad rides. Right. Like and Furious. Yep. And as a result of people thinking ahead, knowing that Epic Universe was going to be opening soon, that in 2024, Universal Orlando attendance dropped 2.6% at the main park and over 5% at Islands of adventure And I'm going honest with you. That was me.
00:24:24
Speaker
like i knew things were coming. I wasn't going to go. Exactly. So, and so right now, there were two big drivers of that. One is that Disney World has got some major theme park renovations coming, just like Universal had. Think about it. They've got Monstropolis at Disney Hollywood Studios. They've got the Muppets takeover of the Rock and Roll. It's the same darn ride, but go ahead. Yeah.
00:24:51
Speaker
With the just mentioned Indiana Jones ride and the Encanto coming over to Disney Animal Kingdom, Cars Land and Villains Land coming at Magic Kingdom. All of this. Which one are you most excited for?
00:25:06
Speaker
For Cars Land or Villains Land or just all of these? all them um Honestly, it would have to be either Cars Land or Munchtropolis, I think. Okay. And and I'm either Cars Land or Villains Land. so Yeah.
00:25:18
Speaker
So all of that, you know, people are looking at all of that and saying, OK, let's just be honest. It's not cheap to go to Disney. And so do I want to go now and miss out for a couple of years before I can go back when all of this new stuff will not be as new? Or do I wait until it's brand new and go at that time? Yeah. And, and for me, that's exactly what happened at universal, right? Like I was like, Hey, I'm waiting. And that's how I feel at Disney. We're going to use all our Disney points this year. And we're not going to, maybe we go to Epcot one day, but that's it. If that we're not going to be in the parks at all. And I think pricing has been a part of that, right? It is expensive and I need new stuff. Sorry. Like, If I've been on something, and again, I think it also depends where you are in life, right? We always talk about this, which, you know, people have to understand. If you have kids that are two and four, I mean, my youngest is going to be 16, you know, 16, 20, and 22. Like, I'm in a different spot. But I will tell you, if my kids have ridden the rides a ton of times, why are we going back?
00:26:28
Speaker
to ride the same rides again, to eat the same food. Other than nostalgia. I mean, that's- Yeah. And and and and maybe nostalgia fits in like a few times here and there, but it doesn't necessitate for our family to go every year.
00:26:39
Speaker
Right. And we're holding out, like our big thing is we were actually just going over our points yesterday and like, hey, so we're going to go to Hilton Ed's. This is how my points are using. We're going to go and do some, I think some tennis camp stuff maybe over the summer, which may or may not happen. It just kind of depends how our summer goes. It'll be last minute items. And we're like, but then in 2027, like we're making a big trip.
00:27:01
Speaker
Right. So I get it. o To Orlando, right? Correct, which we will do just Disney at that point. Right. Okay. Yep. Now, the only other thing that you might want to look at this, if you know getting or if being the first at a new land or a new ride is not your thing, 2026 could be you know the year that if you zig while others zag, you might be there with low crowds. so you I would say that except the crowds have been absolutely ridiculous now. Well, yeah, it's all relative, right? You know, a a slower, and you don't see me doing the air quotes with my fingers, a slower day at Disney is still pretty bonfire. A day at Disney, yeah. yeah
00:27:43
Speaker
So anyway, ah the only other piece of park news that we have right now is that on if you're going to Magic Kingdom on January 27th, so in about two months, It will be closing very early, and that's 4.30 p.m. because Disney is doing their Disney cast member which is service um celebration. Yes, they will be celebrating all of the longtime cast members, which is, you know, like Damon just said, it's very neat that they do something to show appreciation like that. Yeah.
00:28:16
Speaker
I think before we get into the after show, like, I think this has to be like a Disney park news and cruise news. All we've been seeing is stuff about the Disney destiny. Right now that people have gotten on it, the influencers. And again, once I retire, that is part of my goal is to be able to do events like that.
00:28:38
Speaker
Right. I think that would be great. I'll tell you, know I was kind of like, I love Royal Caribbean. There's so much more to do. I don't know. I looked at some of the stuff on that ship and was like, we got to get back on a Disney cruise. And I didn't think I would say that.
00:28:53
Speaker
And it's looked really cool. I don't know if it's the IP. I don't know if it's the vibe. I don't know if it's the way the ship is set up, but it looks pretty darn neat.
00:29:05
Speaker
What's the, um, what's the new bar there that everyone's the haunted mansion one? or Oh yeah yeah. Is it that or the 20,000 leagues? Oh, I don't know. I saw the Haunted Mansion stuff. it just it you know You know what? Again, my knock on the Disney ships has always been they're great for younger kids, and then you kind of miss out on things to do.
00:29:26
Speaker
right For whatever reason, this ship looks like it has more just things to do. Like I remember our last Disney cruise and we were kind of like sitting around for an hour or two going, okay, what are we doing?
00:29:38
Speaker
i feel like this is a little different now. So I'm excited for that. And I wouldn't be surprised if you see us booking that as well. Okay. Especially, especially, like I said, you know, if we go from five people to two,
00:29:53
Speaker
man, am one of those people that like, you're going to be like, get concierge level, man. Damon does a lot of stuff. Like we are going to dive full into that sort of world of like being, and again, I'll be a grandparent influencer. I'm going to call it right now. That's what, that's what the goal is is to be a grandparent influencer. Yeah. When you retire, and you're like are you older than me though?
00:30:20
Speaker
Uh, I thought we were pretty much the same. Hey, I'm 51. I'm just going to say I'm 51. Okay. I'm 52. So, okay. Okay. Yeah. You're a year older than me. So when you retire first and you're rolling in that money, just feel free to invite me and treat me to a cruise. All right. There you go. but There you go.
00:30:35
Speaker
All right, folks. So that is it for park news. So that means it is time for the after show.
00:30:49
Speaker
All right, folks, it is time for the after show. This first piece of news we're going to talk about is actually not about any park or any ride. It's actually about Disney+. plus So if you are a Disney+, plus subscriber, you should have received an email not too long ago that indicated that Disney+, plus will no longer be working on certain older devices. So but the interesting thing is that the email didn't actually indicate what devices, what it means by older devices, right? So like right now we have an we have an older Apple TV and we have some Rokus, but it didn't actually say like which one is happen. I don't know how you snuck this in on news.
00:31:33
Speaker
Yeah. Blake snuck this in on me. Let's be honest. Yeah. I mean, well, it's about Disney. Come on. So if you, if you happen to have an older device, you just need to keep, just keep an eye out because all of a sudden Disney plus may stop working on your device. So, all right, moving on to Dollywood. Let's go over to Dollywood. So I don't think it's excited about that. i am, but i wish I wish this was like next to the other ride system thing. because I think they go hand in hand.
00:32:02
Speaker
Right. So... but Let's start with this, yes. Yeah. So Dollywood has revealed the ride vehicle design for its new night flight expedition ride that is coming. So this is going to be the amphibious ride vehicle, and it interacts with... And this is Dollywood's wording, by the way. It interacts with vivid multimedia projections, dynamic onboard and off-board audio, as well as special lighting effects to create a truly immersive ride experience.
00:32:33
Speaker
And there's a... I'm so excited for... Yeah, I'm so excited for this. I really hope it doesn't disappoint. I mean, again we haven't seen a lot of what Disney's going to do. So i i can't say that, you know, what they're doing is not, you know, innovative as well.
00:32:54
Speaker
But i listen, an Epic Universe, I look at Epic Universe and I had probably one of the best vacations with the family there. I still would say that I think it was something of a,
00:33:09
Speaker
yeah I don't think it was that innovative, but I think what it was is that everything that they did, they did really well. And it was all together in one shot, excluding the werewolf ride, which is totally a throwaway, by the way.
00:33:24
Speaker
But really think... Oh, yeah. That one's... Not Monsters Unleashed. Monsters Unleashed is awesome. But see, even Monsters Unleashed is really, really good. But it's the same kind of ride vehicle that you had in Harry Potter.
00:33:36
Speaker
But it's so well done that it makes the ride phenomenal. But anyway, I think for this, what I'm so excited about is that it's something different. Right. And I really hope that it pulls through.
00:33:47
Speaker
And as everyone knows... I need to be there first for things before they get wrecked by other people. So I will be there this year. and that is the goal is night flight.
New Theme Park Attractions
00:33:59
Speaker
We should, we should take, we should make a trip. We should. ah i told you, you should come with us. Yeah. Chris is probably going to meet us too, but like I told you the dates and you kind of blew me off. So I what to say. did not blow you off. I had to say, i don't know yet. yeah I can't plan that far out.
00:34:16
Speaker
Oh my goodness. We have our cruise booked for 27. Like what? It was funny because I was talking to somebody that listens to the show and, know, we go with them to like Hollywood that not Hollywood that we go to them with the Halloween stuff every year in area. Right. Right. And I said to you know, she, when we met last time and we were talking, she was like, oh, you know, we'll tell us, you know, when you're going on that cruise, you know, we would always want to go on a cruise. And I said, yep, no problem. So I sent her the information, but I guess I just, like I said, oh, these are the dates. And I didn't think, and she's like, I can't find it. I can't find it. Like, what are talking about? She was like, oh, I thought you were talking about 26. Like, no, like we're booked for 27. So I try to book things pretty early, but yeah, Blake has the dates. So don't let him, you know, he has the dates. It's totally on him. I'm going to look into it. I promise. All right. Hey, let's drop down to the other ride system article. No, now want to go in your order because now I need a break.
00:35:13
Speaker
I need to like ramp up to that. So we're talking about the ride footers installed for the replacement for Rip Ride Rocket Coaster, which again, i tell you is one of the best. One of the things that they did on that coaster.
00:35:24
Speaker
You liked that? Wait a minute. You liked that ride? Oh, yeah. really did it Oh, I hated that ride. I rode it one time and I thought, I'm not doing that again. So I think that one of the things that they did on that ride that was so minimal and so awesome at the same time is the secret menu.
00:35:44
Speaker
how can you not love a secret music menu? Like, I mean, that was just such like a thing. Like, it made such a big deal. Yeah, I like that coaster. But you like that coaster for the music. You like that coaster for the video that you get at the end. Like, as a coaster, it was fine.
00:36:00
Speaker
But like those two things together were awesome. And, you know, putting in your special things so get to the you know other menu, like well worth it. I think that's something that was awesome. how I gotta be honest. I have no clue what you're talking about. I didn't even know there was a special menu.
00:36:13
Speaker
So what is it it like give you It gave you a secret music soundtrack or something? Wait, do you know what ride we're talking about? Yes, it's the rip yeah it's the one that's supposed to be like rock and roll based and you go straight pick a song.
00:36:27
Speaker
Maybe I did that. I don't know. I was trying to... maybe You have to pick a song. Otherwise, you just get a default song. But there's a menu of songs and you pick like a song that you would like. Well, when you got on the ride, there was a secret menu system that opened up even more songs.
00:36:41
Speaker
I did not know that. and So, wow. yeah folks which is Folks, this is what I deal with. Feel for me. Yeah, exactly. all right. But to what, to what Damon is talking about, they are, have installed ride footers now for the replacement ride. Which could be what we're going to see. The Fast and the Furious ride that exists out in California.
00:37:02
Speaker
Right. Which isn't bad. Yeah. So there's still no official word. That is the weird thing is they're putting footers in, but there is no official word from Universal on what this is going to be. so Yeah. And to me, that makes me believe that it will be the same ride or a similar ride because they are already, you know what I mean? Like that they're putting the footers in. I think that's what we're going to get.
00:37:24
Speaker
Right. Yeah. All right. let's Let's actually step outside of a park for a minute. So, you know, there were the wildfires out in California. And as a way to help rebuild from that, Disney Imagineers are helping redesigning Charles White Park in Altadena, California. That is right outside of Los Angeles.
00:37:44
Speaker
There are pictures that they are helping to, i don't want to say Disney-fy it, but they're going to help the the city of Altadena to rebuild this park from the wildfire. So thought it was nice ah yes nice a little community effort from Disney that we wanted to talk about.
00:38:04
Speaker
all right, let's go back to Universal Orlando. They are already looking at expanding Epic Universe. what we We knew this, though. Yeah, but it seems pretty accelerated. I did i was not expecting them to do this this fast. So they're going to it's going to go on on an expansion pad behind the Ministry of Magic. So this will be in the Harry Potter section of Epic Universe.
00:38:29
Speaker
Now, there's nothing official again, but the prevailing rumor, if you look at some patent applications from Universal, this could be a broom ride or possibly Quidditch match type experience at Ministry of Magic. Yeah, I hope it's not, again, same ride vehicle that we have with Forbidden Journey, just kind of upped again because we got that already in, you know, which is unleashed. So yeah it will be something different. I think there's, ah people are kind of matching this rumor up with some information about a ride system right that Universal has.
00:39:06
Speaker
ah a broomstick ride would be pretty interesting. What if... You took the ride that I hate. What is it um over at Avatar?
00:39:18
Speaker
Yeah, Avatar over Animal Kingdom. Yeah, which, which what is that ride called again? I just, I blocked out. Flight of Passage. Yeah. And did something like that? I don't know. If you could ga gamify it somehow where you could actually, like, get points.
00:39:33
Speaker
I do like gamified rides because the replayability is is great, like Toy Story Mania. Like, it's phenomenal. So, yeah, it's going to be interesting to see what they do.
00:39:43
Speaker
i hope it's something new. Right. And we can talk about new things. We're going to get to some interesting new things in a minute. Yeah. Speaking of gamifying, did you do VillainCon over at Universal?
00:39:59
Speaker
No, I don't think so. Oh, man. that I was... Wait, wait, wait. You're talking about the ride? So it's like, I say it's ride. You're talking about the minion ride? Yes. The one where you stand on the thing? Yeah, yeah, of course. Yeah, stand on the walkway and shoot things. That was a lot more fun than I was expecting it to be. I would agree with that assessment. I would agree.
00:40:16
Speaker
I went into it thinking, okay, this is going to be a minion ride. But like the whole shooting with the laser gun, that was that was really fun, actually. Absolutely. Absolutely. Okay. So, all right. So, Silverwood Theme Park. This is a Which I've never heard of, by the way. I had never heard of it either until Damon sent me this link. So, this is a regional theme park in, guess, I'm going to hopefully say this right.
00:40:40
Speaker
Athol, Athol, idaho Okay. So it's in the Northwest. And by the way, who even knew there would be a theme park in Idaho? I would not have known that. all right. So it's located in Athol, Idaho. It's operated by the Norton family and they have been running it for 35 years, spans 400 acres and is home to more than 70 rides and attractions. So this is not a small.
00:41:06
Speaker
Yeah. I was surprised. didn't know anything about it. And it's not small. I was just kind surprised. and And there's a water park, it's called Boulder Beach Water Park. They are selling all of this to the Hershend Company.
00:41:21
Speaker
And you may not know this, but Hershend operates more than 40 family entertainment brands in America. But the two that are important. Right. Among them, one is Dollywood. So this is the company that operates Dollywood. And Silver Dollar City. Silver Dollar City. Another favorite park of mine.
00:41:41
Speaker
Yes. Well worth going to. I tell you, you know, the fact that, and we talk about that park all the time. One, because it was like far to drive and that was a terrible drive. But two, because there's a jail on site. Yeah. and And Silver Dollar City is actually...
00:41:58
Speaker
manage like its own town. So there's actually a police for silver dollar city, which is kind of cool. But anyway, there's this, you know, fun jail.
00:42:10
Speaker
But for whatever reason, my boys went in and the door got stuck and they couldn't get out. And it was so funny. i thought that was really funny. do you was that Do you think that was intentional, like a gimmick that they do? like I don't think so. oh, it locked on you one time. No, it didn't lock. It was just stuck. Like, it was just kind of funny. But it it was something that we talk about all the time.
00:42:31
Speaker
Okay. So anyway, they are selling to the Hershend Corporation and Hershend is, like we just said, no, they're not new to the theme park. So they should be able to keep that going. By the way, they also own, I didn't realize this, the Harlem Globetrotters. I would not have thought that a entertainment or a theme park company would have owned them, but they own the Harlem Globetrotters. All right.
00:42:54
Speaker
Last little bit of after show news. And and this is where and not least, this is this is crazy. Yeah. So ah there are some links online. If you are, by the way, a Patreon subscriber, you're going to get our show notes with a link to what we are getting ready to talk about. So there's a company called Intamin. I'm guessing that's how it's pronounced.
00:43:16
Speaker
They are teaming up. produce All sorts of rides, by the way, like they're a bait deal. Yeah. So they are teaming up with ETF ride systems to create just what I'm calling the next generation of trackless ride systems. And there is a demo video that they have put out that it's it's all computer generated, right? It's nothing actual physical that they've done.
00:43:38
Speaker
Just demonstrating what they are going to be capable of. And this looks and amazing. And what you see here is just like a little taste of it. So when I always talk about, you know, what's the next thing? Like, what are we looking at? I need something different. Right. I need holograms. I need this. I need that.
00:43:57
Speaker
This may be it. So there's, it's a trackless ride system, but it can do so many other things. So one, it's faster, right? So you can do like kind of a coaster experience. and Like a launch, like a launch coaster. Yeah, which is cool.
00:44:15
Speaker
It has a drop. Like you can do, and they're calling them bungee drops, which means like it's not a slow drop. Like it's a bungee drop and each kind of car can be independent of the rest of them, which is also super crazy.
00:44:31
Speaker
the the The CGI that they have is just... nut I mean, yeah you you have 360 motion. You have, what do they have it at like 1.5 meters a second? like Right. It is something. It's tilting.
00:44:46
Speaker
It's rolling. Yeah, 8% tilt you have. um These drops. So it's I'm curious because it almost seems like it's the next iteration of what we're going to see at Dollywood.
00:44:58
Speaker
um in terms of their ride system right but i'm gonna tell you this teaser is crazy so 36 kilometers per hour i don't know what that is a miles per hour but they have a video of a dinosaur chasing you yeah in your ride vehicle like how awesome is that this is and it's and it's pretty much for dark ride so it seems like it will all be inside This is like, to me, this is like Rise of the Resistance, but at a whole nother level.
00:45:27
Speaker
Yes. And again, like it is a trackless dark ride. So is it something brand, brand new? No. But i look for innovation wherever we can get it. And I think that there's enough in here to kind of say innovation. it's kind of like what I said about Epic. Like everything's just done better. Like if you give me this though, this might be interesting. Yeah. And looking at the the demonstration here,
00:45:53
Speaker
It looks like you would be able to tailor this to just about any IP that you could think of. Like yeah they would be able to fit it in. Back to the future, Ghostbusters. Yeah, they've got all types of genres in this little demo that we're looking at. So anyway, this is you know this is still on the horizon. They are still in development. But I would imagine within the next three to four years, you're going to see something come out that uses this, which is going to be really cool.
00:46:24
Speaker
All right. So that pretty much wraps it up for today. We'd like to thank our sponsor. Once again, don't resist the travel.com. If you are heading on a trip, it doesn't have to be a Disney trip. Doesn't have to be a Dollywood trip. It can be any trip.
00:46:41
Speaker
Go visit them. Let them start creating and planning your getaway and let them handle all of the details. Once again, that is don't resist the travel.com.
00:46:52
Speaker
dot com You can listen to us on all of your podcast streamers. Please go and rate us and give us a review. um If we're not on your favorite platform, just drop us a message and we will get you added.
00:47:06
Speaker
And if you do anything else, please go to Apple Podcasts, leave us a five-star rating and review us. That will help us out more than you can possibly imagine. Thank you. We forgot to pick. We forgot again to pick what seat, but thank goodness I didn't forget this time. Oh, what seat are you going to pick?
00:47:21
Speaker
Go ahead. I don't remember. What seat did I pick? I have my phone turned off now because... don't know. I can't remember. So we have this fun thing that we've been doing where like, hey, if you're on a train or an airplane... Oh, that's right. There's going to be one you know with cars coming up. Like, where would you want to sit? And there's Disney characters, Marvel characters, Star Wars characters. Go on our Instagram, Rhubarb Travelers, or TikTok, Rhubarb Travelers, and and go take a look.
00:47:47
Speaker
And then pick your seat. Right. It's kind of fun. And we keep saying that Blake keeps saying on the videos and, you know, student tune into the next show where we're going to sit. And the last time we didn't do it. But this time I remembered at the last moment, I forget what seat I was in.
00:48:01
Speaker
i i forgot to. Oh, my goodness. Man, we are we are a well-oiled machine on this show, folks, as you can tell. Oh my goodness. He's going to make me actually flip over to it if I can. Yeah. go Take a look. So um while he's pulling that up, while he's pulling it up, let me just go. If you want to send us an email, send it to rhubarbtravelerspodcast at gmail.com. You can send us questions. You can send us strip reviews. You can send us an email commenting on how wrong Damon is about regional musical theater, whatever strikes your fancy.
00:48:39
Speaker
He just talked about Instagram and TikTok. We have accounts on there. So head on over to the socials, look up Rhubarb Travelers, and we will be there.
00:48:51
Speaker
Have you pulled it yet? No, because I don't remember what the password is. It's terrible. i think I think I just remembered it, though. Okay. It should have been easy for me to remember because, you know, now that I remember what it was. All right. So we have these seats. I picked seat seven, which was Remy and BB-8. And the reason I picked it is because I'm all about the food, and I think that if I'm on a train ride, they're going to get me the best food.
00:49:16
Speaker
right I don't even know Blake commented because, you know, it's Blake. I don't see a comment here, so i don't know what seat he'd sit in. My choice would be I'm going to do the Obi-Wan Kenobi and Merida seat just because i think it would be really neat to listen to their accents the entire ride, especially Merida's Scottish accent. i But we're on a run a ride and they both have weapons, though. I don't know how I feel about that.
00:49:45
Speaker
I don't know. I could get over that just by listening to Merida all day. Okay. All right. Well, that's good at least. All right. So I'm glad we remembered to do that finally. All right, folks, that will do it for the show this week. We will be back as always in two weeks. And until then, Damon. And we did a good job because we're going to miss both holidays based on our schedule. Oh, that's right. Yeah, we will have time off. So you will not hear from us again until after the Thanksgiving holiday. But that's okay because that's only a week away. So it fits our schedule perfect.
00:50:17
Speaker
Yep, exactly. So until then, Damon, I will talk to you later, my friend. Sounds good. Folks, the Rhubarb Travelers podcast is for entertainment purposes only. We are not employed by the Walt Disney Company or NBC Universal, the parent company of Universal Studios. And as such, all opinions expressed on the show are exclusively our own.
00:50:37
Speaker
Please consult a DVC or Disney cast member or Universal team member for more information about anything we might have talked about today.
00:50:57
Speaker
I agree with you. Like once these leaves start coming down in North Carolina, I start to get pretty bad allergies. It's the moisture with the leaves and the mold and the it's. You want to restart. Oh my goodness. Yeah. I'm just going to turn off my phone. Like I'm in the house. Like that was my son.